Welcome to the first annual E3 trailer explosion. While not all of this year's trailers are good (Fantasia: Music Evolved), some demand complete control of your polygon-craving eyeballs (The Crew). So, without further adieu, here is just about every trailer presented at E3 2013.

“All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity. But the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible.”

- T. E. Lawrence

By reading this quote in the teaser trailer for Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, Nathan Drake resurfaced a chilling description of the ambition that has motivated some of history’s accomplished men and women. But Drake wasn’t describing any overachievers of times gone by. No, the man he was describing was himself. Here is a character who dreams of the fantastical, but rather than remain confined within his imagination, stops at nothing to prove the treasures some see as fairy tales are not only real, but worth seeking.

Most chilling, however, is that this quote so perfectly describes the drive that lies within anybody who unrelentingly seeks adventure through a start button and a couple of analog sticks.

Like looking into a mirror.

Gamers, you see, are dreamers. Their agendas, whether to fight a little Modern Warfare or skip homework just to bitch slap a few of Gotham’s sleaziest, are not unlike Drake’s equally irrational pursuits. Yep, just as if they were your average, everyday tomb raider on a mission to take down an army of pirates, people who pick up gaming as a full-time hobby will inevitably meet people don’t understand.

In his book Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter, author Tom Bissel humorously pinpoints the choices gamers make, not to mention the divisive disapproval they encounter.

“More than any other form of entertainment,” Bissel writes, “video games tend to divide rooms into Us and Them. We are, in effect, admitting that we like to spend our time shooting monsters, and They are, not unreasonably, failing to find the value in that.”

Of course, many gamers remain unbothered by this. If playing video games is a true calling, it often brings with it a form confident comfort that arrives once you know that what you are doing is right. This is the same inner guidance that drives so many of gaming’s greatest heroes into the chasms of doom time and time again. Would Master Chief even remotely give a damn if anybody warned him of the upcoming perils in Halo 4? Or did Samus Aran get to where she is by lending her ear to those who told her “Intergalactic Bounty Hunter” was a man’s title? Please. Attempting to rearrange the compass that guides these warriors is as futile as trying to reverse Earth’s own magnetic polarity.

Samus Aran is who you aint fuckin&#Array; with.

Equally as futile is any attempt to permanently strip the controller from the grasp of die-hard gamers' hands, which is to strip their identity from their soul. If this sounds like a drastic choice of words, visit any major comic convention and you'll most certainly find a passionate gathering of aficionados expressing a love for games that can only be described as soulful. Where do they gain the courage for these admirable showings of self? Perhaps, at least partly, from such revered video game characters as Solid Snake, who feels most at home with a cigarette in his mouth and a rifle in his hands, all while confidently sporting his glaringly passé mustache and mullet combo. Snake is fine with all this because he has found peace through accepting himself, not for the man he has become, but for the man he always was. This serenity is exactly what proud gamers feel when they sit down to play, or when they arrive at a convention surrounded by their brethren.

Couldn&#Array;t have said it better myself.

While self-acceptance seems to lie within those who hang on to their passion, it does not always come easy, as gaming’s nerdy cache can be especially glaring when one is young. To put it another way, wearing a Zelda shirt to seventh-grade gym class isn’t exactly a one-way ticket into the cool club. Sure, a lot of kids don’t care, but some do. Referring back to Bissel’s book, perhaps he put it best when revealing his love for The Elder Scrolls series.

“It is difficult to describe Oblivion without atavistic fears of being savaged by the same jean-jacketed dullards who in 1985 threw my Advanced Dungeon & Dragons’ Monster Manual II into Lake Michigan.”

It’s important to tell young people who have faced bullying that it gets better. It truly does, and it’s not difficult to see how the narratives within today's digital entertainment can help. Quite simply, nothing is more relatable to a rough childhood than a hero’s brutal and unlikely quest. It also helps that such negative experiences, whether they amount to severe bullying or light snickering, are shared by other gamers, not to mention the battle-hardened characters of video game lore. Even Super Mario himself must have felt the sting of blatant ridicule as he abandoned his plumbing gig to save Princess Peach.

Super Hero

But life is not all plumbers, princesses and star power. Thanks to advancements in storytelling, not to mention technology, game narratives have grown far more mature and thus, more validating of our real life struggles. Take Isaac Clarke of Dead Space, whom players control as he confronts genuine despair aboard the haunted caverns of an abandoned space station. This guy blurts the F bomb when he’s startled, cracks jokes to help others cheer up, and he misses his girlfriend. All in all, pretty normal. But it’s during one of the game's particularly gruesome scenes, when you can see the terror in Clarke's eyes, that it becomes apparent: This guy is human. Even so, what could anybody possibly have in common with the lone survivor of a monster-infested spacecraft in the future? After all, he had the opportunity to escape in Dead Space 2, which any rational human being would have taken. Well, Clarke stuck around because he knew that staying in deep space was the only way he could regain something far more valuable than any loot: his sanity. Are gamers not seeking a small portion of the exact same thing the moment they sit down to play a game?

For Isaac Clarke, there are long days and then there are looooooooooooooooong days.

Sanity. Comfort. Escape. Solace. Accomplishment. Serenity. Adventure. These are the things gamers seek and ultimately find along with their heroes. Some people might not understand, but that’s just fine because, hey, it happens when you’re a dreamer who puts adventure before logic. Even a globetrotter as charming as Nathan Drake is misunderstood by those closest to him. In the launch trailer for Uncharted 3, right before throwing himself into yet another life-threatening debacle, Drake’s love interest and voice of reason, Elena Fisher, can be heard saying “For what? Treasure?” You’re damn right. Of course, right after Drake talks some sense into her, she’ll be right behind him because, like the rest of us, all she really wants is an adventure to call her own.

Dear Nintendo,

Thank you for having the cajones to go all-in on 3D technology. So far, you’re the only company that’s done so (videogame or otherwise). Granted, that likely has something to do with your nifty little no-glasses trick, but that’s even more reason to give you a giant virtual hug. However, Sony is hot on your heels with a portable system of their own and convenient multi-dimensional magic does not guarantee another decade of handheld dominance. In fact, if you don’t make some serious improvements, I believe your 3D technology could actually be your downfall against a portable powerhouse like the NGP, especially if current rumors are true and Sony prices that bad boy anywhere near $250.

So listen up Nintendo, because as you know, we gamers are a fickle bunch.

Round One: FIGHT!!!

For 3DS 2.0, improve the 3D technology before anything else.

While the 3D graphics cause the most ooohs and aaahs when playing the 3DS, it also causes the most F-bombs and other frustrated expletives. In the case of Pilotwings Resort, there were times when I had to make a steep turn mid-flight, causing me to subconsciously tilt the system in the direction I wanted to go. On the upside, this is a testament to immersive gameplay. On the downside, it really chapped my ass because the composite 3D image would split into two flat images. That means gameplay had been harmed rather than enhanced, and correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that the exact opposite of what 3D is supposed to do? I admit, the effect is otherwise extremely impressive and this issue won’t rear its head in every game, but things can get ugly and that's a major problem, especially for people buying the 3DS because they want to experience videogames in all dimensions.

Bummer, dude.

Sure, die-hard Nintendo fans (myself included) will buy a the 3DS no matter what. Link, Mario and Pokemon have that effect on us. But c’mon, Nintendo. Many casual gamers, not to mention their parents, are going to seriously factor in the 3D graphics when making a decision and right now, they're set up to get frustrated, or worse, resentful. For example, I’d love to defeat Ganondorf in glorious 3D, but not if reliving such a historic battle requires constantly readjusting a setting. Similarly, I don't want to repeat my Pilotwings experience while reintroducing myself to Pit of Kid Icarus fame. I very well may end up playing these games with the 3D feature turned way down or off entirely. Pity.

Just as your consumers will take notice, so will your competitors. Sony now has the opportunity to position its NGP directly against a weaker device with a smaller screen and a name highlighting a benefit that doesn’t always work as well as it should. As someone who’s worked in Advertising for over half a decade, I promise you they’re considering such a strategy, and if they can hit a competitive price point, the NGP seems like a better deal, even for a Nintendo geek like me.

Double vision not included. Just sayin'.

Now, I don’t know how or even if this problem can be fixed, but I have faith in you, Nintendo. After all, industry-changing technologies are nothing new for you, so I believe the 3DS can become a monumental success. If you get its next iteration right, it’s not just Sony and Microsoft that may follow suit, it’s also Samsung, Toshiba, LG, Apple and any other company that makes anything with a screen.

You gave us 3D, now show us why.

Despite anything anybody says (including myself) about the 3DS’ hardware, it must feature exclusive software that shows us exactly how rad 3D graphics can be. This might sound counter-intuitive considering my above critiques, but without games that show how 3D can enhance gameplay, it’s going to remain nothing more than a fancy-schmancy gimmick.

Look at what Wii Sports did for motion controls. A game of tennis using the Wiimote is so simple it’s stupid, but for some reason, it caught on. At the time this game was released, the Wii was the only system that could pull it off. Why not repeat history? Create a deceptively simple yet fun game that both showcases and requires 3D. Rather than give Sony an opportunity to exploit your weakness, this will make them wish the NGP had 3D capabilities. More importantly, it would make Nintendo fan boys and girls proud to own a 3DS.

An Ocarina of Time remake is awesome, but it's not enough.

Of course, some naysayers are already saying it can’t be done. That 3D can’t positively affect gameplay. I put them in the same class of folks who once said the world was flat or that human flight was impossible. If we don’t see a great 3D game of this type by the time the next generation of 3DS launches, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible, it will only mean that Nintendo has failed.

Does all this mean the 3DS sucks?

Hell no. It might seem like I just ripped the 3DS a new a-hole (if it even had an a-hole to begin with), but I have some major props to dole out as well. Thank goodness there's an analogue control for the 3D feature. On it's lowest setting, the effect is still impressive and playing this way is a decent (if not perfect) solution to the tilting issue. Do I regret buying a 3DS? Not for one second. I heart Nintendo and I trust that their new system will feature some of the best take-anywhere games I have yet to play. Even when I continue my bromance with Nathan Drake on the NGP, I don't see its library competing with the Nintendo family of characters.

Just a few features you'll never see on an NGP.

I honestly hope both systems succeed, but only one will end up on top. Whether it’s Nintendo or Sony that wins out, we’re all in for another decade of exciting handheld gaming. However, should the 3DS fail, it will be a very sad story because, for better or worse, I believe this is the best (and maybe last) shot 3D technology will ever have at reaching beyond it’s meager and rather disappointing adolescence.